Germany’s Merz: "Syria is safe, refugees should go home"

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Monday, November 3, that refugees from Syria should return to their homeland, declaring that the civil war there has ended and that the conditions justifying asylum in Germany no longer exist.

“The civil war in Syria is over. There are now no grounds for asylum in Germany, so we can start deportations,” Merz said at a joint press conference with Schleswig-Holstein’s Prime Minister Daniel Günther.

He expressed hope that the majority of Syrian refugees would “voluntarily return to their country and take part in its reconstruction,” stressing that rebuilding Syria would not be possible without their involvement. “Those who refuse to return to the country while in Germany can, of course, be expelled in the future,” he added.

The German leader also underscored the need to clearly separate asylum procedures from those for admitting migrant workers.

“I am very dissatisfied that we still have people who could already be integrated into the labor market, but are still in the asylum process,” Merz said.

He proposed an administrative reform to fully separate asylum cases from employment integration through the new “Work-and-Stay” agency. “Translated, this means: yes, work and stay,” he explained.

The latest government data show that asylum applications in Germany have sharply declined. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt reported that in October 2025, the number of initial asylum applications dropped to 8,823 — about 55% fewer than in October 2024, when 19,785 people applied.

Dobrindt previously announced plans to accelerate deportations and said he would “do everything” to reach agreements with both Afghanistan and Syria to facilitate returns. He noted that Germany intends to deport not only convicted criminals but also asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected.

Regarding Afghanistan, the minister recalled that since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, Germany has already carried out two deportations: 28 Afghans in August 2024 and 81 in July 2025. According to authorities, all deportees were convicted criminals serving prison sentences before expulsion.

By Tamilla Hasanova